So much of the social engagement right now is not about a sense of community, but more about playing into your tribe, your following.

Reddit recently surpassed Facebook to become the third most visited website in the U.S. (Facebook still has larger traffic on a global scale.) But Ohanian suggests that it’s only a matter of time before its weakness starts to show.

“In some way, Reddit is still ahead of the game at this point. But it’s a ubiquitous platform; it’s not designed for specific communities,” he said. “I think we’re going to see this balkanization where more communities move from Facebook Groups or subreddits to entirely new platforms that are getting built.”

If you don’t have a following, you don’t really have a voice…

“What people seem to be clamoring for more and more is community, whether it’s going to private group chats on existing platforms, like WhatsApp groups, or going to new platforms that have emerged,” Ohanian added.